Holbrook officials want higher cut of medical marijuana bucks

Tuesday

Aug 19, 2014 at 3:06 PMAug 19, 2014 at 7:12 PM

By Tom Gorman

Holbrook officials are seeking a higher percentage of revenues than initially negotiated from a medical marijuana cultivation company proposing to operate in town.Selectmen on Aug. 12 approved an amendment to a host community agreement with Massmedicum Corp. that would allow the non-profit company to operate a medicinal marijuana cultivating facility in an industrial park on Mear Road and sell the product to a distributor in another community.Under the selectmen’s proposal, the town would receive 2.5 percent of gross revenues up to $4 million and 3.75 percent of more than $4 million of revenues.Town Administrator William Phelan explained that he negotiated an amendment to the existing agreement with representatives of Massmedicum Corp. after President Dr. James Kurnick and attorney Phil Silverman came before selectmen on Aug. 4 seeking support of their proposal.Phelan and Massmedicum initially had agreed to 2 percent of gross revenues up to $4 million be paid to Holbrook and a one time upfront payment of $50,000. Revenues over $4 million would require a 3 percent share to Holbrook.Selectmen also approved a letter of support of the facility to be sent to the state Department of Public Health where the company must submit its license application by Aug. 29.Selectmen Chairman Timothy Gordon and colleagues Richard McGaughey and Daniel Moriarty III thought the 2 percent figure was too low and the $50,000 one-time payment was inadequate.McGaughey opined that the town should be properly compensated for hosting such a facility and that revenue could greatly increase once it gets going.Selectmen Matthew Moore said that since the company would just cultivate the marijuana in town, the higher percentage would not be appropriate."Mitigation is more on the distribution side," he said.McGaughey suggested 3 percent up to $4 million of revenue and 4 percent over $4 million, while Gordon proposed 3 percent up to $4 million of revenue.Phelan suggested 2.5 percent up to $4 million and 3.75 percent over $4 million.After a discussion, the board settled on Phelan’s proposal.Last September, Massmedicum proposed to operate a cultivating and dispensing facility in town and selectmen had approved a host community agreement with the company at that time.However, Massmedicum was not granted a license by the state Department of Public Health. Two licenses were granted for facilities in Norfolk County.Phelan said that MassMedicum lost out to other companies that scored higher in the application process. The state has since determined that those companies did not meet specifications and invited Massmedicum to try again.Phelan said that Massmedicum has an edge since Dr. Kurnick is a respected physician."I feel good about his company," Phelan said. "You have a doctor from Mass. General (Hospital) that will extract properties from the (marijuana) plant to provide for patients. They (Massmedicum) scored high because of his involvement."Phelan added that the company seems to be community-spirited."I get the sense from the doctor they want to be good citizens and want to help the town in the spirit of a non-profit," he said, adding that the other companies that sought to operate in town were "not so community-spirited."During his Aug. 4 appearance before selectmen, Dr. Kurnick said that the medicinal cannabis would not contain THC, the drug that provides a high, and that the product would be beneficial to those with seizure disorders and cancer patients.The company is eying its facility in the former Peterson’ Awning building on Mear Road that has been vacant for a while. Some officials questioned security measures the company would have in place.Selectmen Kevin Sheehan said Massmedicum officials are planning to install a state-of-the-art security system with a direct video feed to the police station.In November 2012, voters in the Bay State approved by approximately 60 percent to 40 percent to allow the cultivation and dispensing of medicinal marijuana. According to Silverman, the state allowed 35 licenses and granted 11.The state Department of Public Health oversees licensing and has strict guidelines for the facilities. Each county is allowed a certain number of facilities and companies much meet certain criteria in order to operate.

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